Celebrating 41 Years! Issue 30 Volume 42
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Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
Suspect in June double homicide arrested in New Jersey Seattletimes.com
Al Muhammed Brown
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor It is bittersweet because no matter what, Al Muhammed Brown’s apprehension will not bring back the two lives he took, but on July 18, New Jersey authorities arrested the man indicted in the double shooting of two Gay men of color in Seattle’s Leschi neighborhood. For now, at least the families have that much to comfort them. But soon begins the trial. On June 1, Ali Muhammed Brown, 30, executed Dwone Anderson-Young, 23, and Ahmed Said, 27. Seattle’s LGBTQ community would soon learn that Brown, a man said to harbor radical Islamic beliefs and although he was supposed to register as a sex offender, he did not, posed as Gay on the mobile hookup app Grindr to attract his victims. Brown even went so far as to pick the two young men up outside of popular Gay nightclub, R Place, before shooting the two
young men to death in such a way that King County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Wyman Yip called the slayings “extremely violent, senseless and seemingly unprovoked.” At first, immediately after the horrible murders, there looked to be a sign of hope when Matalepuna Malu, 26, turned himself in after police named him as a suspect, saying he wanted to clear his name. Malu’s family maintained his innocence from the start, believing so much that he did not commit the murders, at one point concerned family members showed up at City Hall to confront the mayor on the situation. Just as Malu and his family had said, his alibi checked out. Malu could be seen on video walking into a casino around the time of the double homicide in the Central District. The casino wasn’t anywhere near the area where the crime took place. Following Malu’s release and a candlelight vigil held near where see Suspect page 4
Obama signs Executive Order PrEP gets seal of barring anti-LGBT discrimination approval in new study frontiersla.com
CBS NEWS
Adherence still the key factor
A PrEP pill, Truvada
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer President Obama signs Executive Order
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer President Obama signed an executive order July 21 protecting many LGBT workers from discrimination in the workplace. The two-part document amends previous orders by Richard Nixon on federal employment and by Lyndon Johnson on protections for employees of federal contactors.
Executive Order 11478, signed by Nixon in 1969, establishes nondiscrimination rules for federal employees. Bill Clinton added protection for sexual orientation in 1998, and Obama’s amendment adds protection for gender identity. Obama also amended Executive Order 11246, originally signed by Lyndon Johnson in 1965, to bar federal contractors from discrimi-
nating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. An estimated 20% of the U.S. workforce will be covered by the president’s order. “It doesn’t make much sense, but today in America, millions of our fellow citizens wake up and go to work with the awareness that they could lose their job, not see Obama page 7
A new study of PrEP medications by NIH (National Institutes of Health) scientists shows that the HIV prevention method remains effective even if users skip occasional doses. The study, released at the International AIDS Conference in Melbourne, Australia, and simultaneously published in The Lancet medical journal, involved 1,600 HIV-negative men who have sex with men and Transgender women in 11 locations, including Chicago,
San Francisco, Boston, Thailand, Rio de Janeiro, and Cape Town. According to the findings, PrEP provided 100% protection among participants who took the pill four times or more every week. Those who took the pill two or three times a week registered a protection rate of about 84%. Those who took fewer than two tablets in the same period had no protection at all. One of the worries about PrEP as an HIV preventative has always been adherence to the dosage regimen, but the latest study seems to indicate that even moderately see PrEP page 8
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LGBT Bar to award Evan Wolfson and David Rosenblum with awards by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor The National LGBT Bar Association, the world’s largest organization of LGBT and allied legal professionals, announced this week that Freedom to Marry founder Evan Wolfson will receive the organization’s 2014 Dan Bradley Award. The award, presented during The Bar’s Lavender Law Conference, is the highest honor it bestows. Wolfson will receive the award during the 2014 Awards Brunch, August 22, in New York City. “Great lawyers don’t just win cases; they change lives,” said D’Arcy Kemnitz, executive director of The Bar. “Evan is a true visionary in the movement to expand marriage equality to LGBT couples. His extraordinary work is moving our country forward in ensuring all families have full recognition, rights and protections under the law. When few others thought marriage was even possible, Evan pioneered and persevered. His hard work and dedication are key reasons marriage equality is sweeping the nation.” According to a press release by Bar officials, in 1983, Wolfson wrote his first paper on marriage and the LGBT community. “Twenty years later, he turned his vision into
Suspect
continued from cover the bodies of Anderson-Young and Said were found, in which for the first time in Seattle City history, the Somali, African-American and LGBT communities came together united in the call for justice and an end to violent crimes, tips started to pour in and witnesses began to come forward. Police were able to piece together what happened that night. Anderson-Young and Said were hanging out at R Place on May 31 and met up with a man identified as “a friend” of Said’s outside the club. Witnesses later identified that man as Brown. One of Anderson-Young’s friends, who saw the man outside the club, told police that he was “creeped out” by Said’s friend and declined Said’s offer of a ride home. Another friend of Anderson-Young’s told police that Said “continually talked about meeting someone outside the club later.” That friend told police that Said appeared to be texting over Grindr; however, after taking a look at Said’s friend outside, that friend also declined Said’s offer for a ride home. Police say Brown, Said and AndersonYoung then drove to Anderson-Young’s house, in the 500 block of 29th Ave. S., where Brown pulled a gun and executed the two young men and then drove off in Said’s car, which was later found abandoned in South Seattle. Police linked Brown to the slayings after they found his fingerprints and three spent 9-mm shell casings inside Said’s car. The mother of Brown’s children told police that her 9-mm semiautomatic handgun was missing and that Brown had access to the gun. Further implicating Brown to the murders, when looking at a photomontage at Seattle police headquarters, one of Anderson-Young’s friends pointed out Brown as the man who drove away from Capitol Hill with the victims. “The murders took place less than 17 minutes after two witnesses saw Ali Brown leave with the victims in Said’s car. There is no evidence to suggest that Said and/or AndersonYoung were armed, and these murders do not appear to be motivated by robbery, drugs
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one of the most respected LGBT organizations in the country,” continued the release. “Today, thanks to his work with Freedom to Marry, a clear majority of Americans support marriage equality and marriage restrictions are falling at a previously unimaginable speed. His steadfast commitment to the marriage equality movement prompted Newsweek to name him ‘the godfather of Gay marriage.’” Born in Brooklyn and raised in Pittsburgh, Wolfson graduated from Yale College in 1978. For two years after graduation, he worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in a village in Togo, West Africa. Upon returning, he attended Harvard Law School, graduating in 1983 and moving on to teach political philosophy at Harvard College. He then served as assistant district attorney for Kings County in Brooklyn, NY. There, he wrote amicus briefs that helped win the U.S. Supreme Court’s ban on race discrimination in jury selection (Batson v. Kentucky) and the New York State high court’s elimination of the marital rape exemption (People v. Liberta).
Center in Philadelphia, an organization that provides direct legal services and health care for the LGBT community, was also a past member of the Bar’s Board of Directors. Rosenblum passed away earlier this year but his partner, Stephan Stoeckl, will accept the honorary award. “It’s no exaggeration to say that countless LGBT people found a home in the legal profession because of David Rosenblum,” Kemnitz said. “The LGBT Bar’s Career Fair, held each year at Lavender Law, is a signature component of The Bar’s work to connect LGBT law students with meaningful careers in the legal field. David left behind a legacy of opportunity that is reflected both in his distinguished legal career and in the vibrant, and growing, career fair he created and loved. We’re honored to pay tribute to his remarkable life and work.”
The Bar will also honor the memory of David Rosenblum, an attorney and advocate who spearheaded Lavender Law’s signature Career Fair. According to the Bar, Rosenblum, who was most recently Legal Director of the Mazzoni
The National LGBT Bar Association is a national association of lawyers, judges and other legal professionals, law students, activists, and affiliated LGBT legal organizations. The Association promotes justice in and through the legal profession for the LGBT community in all its diversity. More information can be found at www.lgbtbar.org. Q-Law – The GLBT Bar Association of Washington is an affiliate of the National LGBT Bar Association. www.q-law.org.
or any other crime,” Seattle Police Detective Cloyd Steiger wrote in charging documents. Detectives say Said was shot multiple times in the face at close range and also in the back, as was Anderson-Young. Steiger added that it’s “evident that these murders were premeditated and unprovoked and part of a common scheme or plan.” What that scheme or plan was, is still unknown. Although Brown was apprehended last week no new information has come to light to help explain why Brown did this terrible thing. Some say Brown killed and targeted, specifically, Said because he was Gay and a Muslim and that Anderson-Young was unlucky to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Another theory is that Brown just didn’t like Gay men in general – Anderson-Young’s mother said in an interview after her son was murdered that her son was an out Gay man – and so he was out to kill that night anyway and it just so happened to be those two who caught the brunt of his maniacal plan. As of now, however, the only certainty is that Brown did indeed pull the trigger, kill the men, and steal the car and then go on the run. Everything else is pure speculation. The good news is the Seattle Police Department has said that they are not ruling anything out. When asked last month whether the shootings were being investigated as a possible hate crime, Assistant Police Chief Carmen Best said, “nothing is off the table.” What is known about Brown, according to his criminal record, he was also wanted on warrants for failure to register as a sex offender after pleading guilty in March of 2012 to communicate with a minor for immoral purposes, and was sentenced to a year in jail; in addition, Brown served federal prison time for conspiracy to commit bank fraud in connection with a plot to defraud several banks. In that case, between January 2002 and November 2004, Brown and three other men defrauded U.S. Bank, Bank of America, Key Bank, Washington Mutual, Wells Fargo and Boeing Employees Credit Union by depositing counterfeit and fake checks then withdrawing funds before the checks were re-
turned, according to charging documents filed in U.S. District Court. Authorities determined that many of the men involved were supporting terrorism in Somalia. And what is also known is that once Brown knew he was being sought by SPD officials, he took off. At one point, he was nearly nabbed in Tacoma but got away. Originally from West Orange, New Jersey, Brown miraculously evaded arrest all the way there when, upon arriving in his home state, he committed robbery and carjacking in the coastal town of Point Pleasant Beach, which then set off a national manhunt for the man who, by then, had been charged with two counts of aggravated murder back in Seattle. Prosecutors say those charges could potentially result in the death penalty. In charging documents, prosecutors wrote that Brown’s “propensity for violence” creates a “substantial likelihood of danger to the community.” The charge of aggravated murder carries two possible sentences: life in prison without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty. It is important to note, however, that Mark Larson, chief of staff for the King County Prosecutor’s Office, said there will be no discussion on whether the death penalty will be sought until after Brown is booked into the King County Jail. “Seattle Police Homicide detectives have been working on this case relentlessly since day one,” said Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole. “I personally offer my thanks to them and every other local, state and federal law enforcement official involved in the search for Mr. Brown and his eventual capture.” In a statement, Mayor Ed Murray, who met with the families of both the victims, said, “All of our communities are safer today as a result. I hope his arrest brings some initial measure of closure to the families of Dwone Anderson-Young and Ahmed Said.” Brown, who was arrested without incident by New Jersey’s Essex County Prosecutors Homicide Task Force and West Orange police on warrant charges, is currently being housed at the Essex County Correctional Center, but will eventually be turned over to the U.S. Marshals Service.
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Whidbey Island’s first Pride Parade comes to Langley on Sunday, August 10 Everyone is invited to Whidbey Island’s first-ever Queer Pride Parade, a celebration of the “Queer” in all of us. The parade will start at the top of Cascade Avenue in Langley at 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 10 and loop through downtown. The idea for Langley’s Queer Pride Parade came from parade organizer and Langley resident Kathryn Lynn Morgen, who said she chose the word “Queer” over “Gay” because it moves beyond the nomenclature of hetero- and homo-sexual to encompass the great swath of gender roles that she sees all around her in modern life. “To me, Queer is an umbrella giving shade from the heat of ‘this way’ and ‘that way,’” Morgen said. “I myself have felt overwhelmed by the exhaustive need of our society to label everything down to the last detail. This is what a man does. This is what a woman does. This is who they sleep with. This is who they marry.” By celebrating our differences, Morgen says, we are celebrating living outside the imposed hetero-normative gender roles and their subsequent restrictions. “Let’s say we’re discussing a male who likes to dress up as a woman. This doesn’t make him Transgender, but he could be. It doesn’t make him Gay, but he could be. It doesn’t make him a drag queen, but he could be.” Morgen said she is exhausted by the constant labeling of everything in our society, mainly people. “Queer” may be an outdated term, but perhaps that’s what makes it right. It’s like repeating a word over and over again until it no longer is associative; it’s just a word. “We must label everything we possibly can until we can’t anymore and labels become
outdated. We must tire ourselves out of labeling. We must expose every last combination of labels (or at least reach as close as we can to the infinite combinations of labels) before we, as a society of individuals, can ALL say it doesn’t matter anymore,” Morgen added. She said she hopes Whidbey’s Queer Pride Parade will not only celebrate our differences, but will also increase awareness of the great, colorful spectrum of possibilities that define what it is to be human. “It’s not just Gay or straight, male or female,” she said. “We are creating new pronouns. We are experiencing a massive shift in consciousness about the way we express our identities, and the Queer Pride Parade is here to honor that.” Registration will be on the day of the event. Parade participants are asked to meet at the Langley Middle School bus lot at noon to line up. It will proceed down First Street, go left on Anthes Avenue, left on Second Avenue, and back up Cascade Avenue to the bus lot. There are a limited number of slots for walking, vehicle and float units. For more info visit the website at www.queerparade.com or check out the Facebook Event Page for guidelines on what is acceptable in the parade. Queer Pride Parade is a grass-roots event in need of volunteers for various tasks including publicity, day-of-event coordination help and float builders. It also seeks financial support in the form of direct donations or sponsorships for costs such as printing promotional materials. To volunteer or make a donation, visit the website or email queerparade@whidbey.com Courtesy of Whidbey Queer Pride Parade
Dignity Seattle donates $700 to Official Pride ASIA Dignity Seattle, the local chapter of DignityUSA, a religious group celebrating the wholeness and holiness of LGBT Catholics, announced this week that they will be donating $700 to Official Pride ASIA, the organization that produces the annual Rice Ball and Pride ASIA events. Delia Vita and Paula Lavallee of Dignity Seattle told Official Pride ASIA’s Founder and Co-Director Aleksa Manila and Co-Founder Arnaldo! Drag Chanteuse their organization raised the money at Dignity Seattle’s 26th Annual Pride Week Breakfast, June 28, held at Central Lutheran Church (1710 11th Ave). Guests at the breakfast purchased $7 tickets for the all-you-can-eat breakfast and a raffle for prizes. Dignity members and the general public participated in the fundraiser, which also benefited Lifelong AIDS Alliance and DignityUSA’s annual convention – being hosted in Seattle in 2015. Lavallee is the current Dignity Seattle President, as well as a member of the National Convention Committee. Vita is Dignity Seattle’s Treasurer. “It is with our deepest gratitude that we gladly accept your generous donation,” Aleksa Manila thanked Dignity Seattle in a letter upon learning of the donation. “Your
generosity will help ensure our organization’s mission will continue to prosper in our communities.” Pride ASIA is comprised of out and proud LGBTQ Asian American/Pacific Islanders in the Seattle and Northwest Region including respected individuals and organizations with rich histories in health advocacy, human rights, social service, political activism, arts and entertainment. Pride ASIA is a proud member of Social Outreach Seattle and The National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance. Founded in 2012, Pride ASIA’s mission is to celebrate, empower and nurture the multi-cultural diversity of the LGBTQIA communities through the AsianPacific Islander American lens. Learn more at www.prideasia.org. According to the group’s description, Dignity Seattle “provides a safe environment for people to reconcile our God-given gifts of sexual orientation and our Catholic faith through Gay-affirming liturgies. Being part of the Dignity Seattle family means claiming ownership of our faith and living up to the responsibilities of that ownership.” Dignity Seattle meets second Sundays at 6 p.m. for liturgies and prayer services at Ravenna United Methodist Church (5751 33rd NE). More information is available at www.dignityseattle.org or by emailing Dignity Seattle at Dignity.Seattle@gmail.com.
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by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor
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Exxon Mobil will comply with executive order against discrimination Texas oil giant Exxon Mobil said on July 22 that it will comply with the new executive order signed by President Obama requiring federal contractors not to discriminate against LGBT employees. Exxon, the world’s biggest oil and gas company, will “abide by the law,” spokesperson Alan Jeffers said. The company won more than $480 million in federal contracts last year, and more than $8 billion since 2006. While Exxon insists that it does not allow discrimination “on any basis,” it has long resisted writing a formal policy to that effect. In May, Exxon’s annual shareholders meeting voted down a proposal to add such language to its equal employment opportunity statement. It was the fifteenth straight year the proposal was rejected. According to the HRC, 91% of Fortune 500 companies include sexual orientation as an explicit part of their non-discrimination policies, and 61% explicitly protect against discrimination based on gender identity. Fluor Corporation – like Exxon Mobil, based in Irving, Texas – and the Washington Post newspaper are the only other companies listed
without explicit policies protecting workers from discrimination based on sexual orientation in HRC’s 2014 corporate equality index. Exxon Mobil did offer spousal benefits to legally married same-sex couples in May 2013, however, a month before the U.S. Supreme Court struck down DOMA. Natasha Lamb of the private equity group Arjuna Capital, an Exxon Mobil shareholder, said she is confident the company will comply with Obama’s executive order to the letter. “I can’t imagine Exxon would compromise a federal contract over a couple of words,” she said. “That would be juvenile. Once regulation is in place, they will follow suit and act in the best interest of shareholders.” Exxon is currently the defendant in a same-sex discrimination complaint in Illinois. Last year, the group Freedom to Work sent the company two fictitious resumes for a job opening in Illinois. One resume had stronger qualifications, but identified the applicant as Gay. Exxon Mobil responded to the lesser-qualified applicant’s resume while the Gay applicant received no reply. Earlier this month, the Illinois Human Rights Commission overturned a lower body’s decision to dismiss the case. Exxon contends the allegations are without merit.
foxbusiness.com
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
AP Photo / Jacquelyn Martin
The new executive order does not include a specific religious exemption, although it also does not abolish a 2002 executive order signed by President George W. Bush that allows religious institutions to claim exemptions based on their beliefs. A group of religious leaders had written to Obama early this month asking him to include a broad religious exemption in his order. Some observers believe that the national LGBT organizations which publicly withdrew their support from ENDA earlier this month were trying to counter this letter and influence Obama to omit significant religious exemptions from his long-awaited executive order. Progressive religious leaders who attended the White House signing ceremony shouted “Amen!” as the president spoke about protecting LGBT workers from discrimination. “Amen! Amen!” Obama responded, and then broke into an impromptu hymn. An executive order is a rule about how the executive branch operates. Because it only applies to departments and agencies under the president and his cabinet secretaries, no Congressional approval is required. On the other hand, Obama’s order only applies to employees of the U.S. government and of companies the government does business with. To cover all workers in the U.S. would require a bill passed through President Obama after signing executive order Congress, which Republican House Speaker able offense. There are people here today John Boehner has vowed to kill. who’ve lost their jobs for that reason. This continued from cover is not speculative, this is not a matter of Groups hail president’s action because of anything they do or fail to do, political correctness – people lose their In spite of the limitations of the measure, but because of who they are – lesbian, gay, jobs as a consequence of this. Their live- LGBT rights groups hailed Obama’s order. bisexual, transgender,” Obama said at the lihoods are threatened, their families are “This historic act will extend muchsigning ceremony. threatened. In fact, more states now allow needed workplace protections to lesbian, “And that’s wrong. We’re here to do what same-sex marriage than prohibit discrim- gay, bisexual, and transgender workers we can to make it right – to bend that arc of ination against LGBT workers. across the nation,” Jerame Davis, execujustice just a little bit in a better direction… “So I firmly believe that it’s time to address tive director of Pride At Work AFL-CIO “In too many states and in too many this injustice for every American.” said in a statement. workplaces, simply being gay, lesbian, “Though the number of unprotected bisexual or transgender can still be a fireNo religious exemption LGBT workers decreased significantly to-
Obama
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day, it’s still true that the best – and sometimes only – workplace protections for vulnerable workers is a strong union contract. In the majority of states, there are still no protections for LGBT workers and Congress has stalled on passing non-discrimination protections that are unencumbered by extraneous exemptions. “Today we can celebrate a step toward full equality, but the effort to protect workers in the workplace continues.” “Like many presidents before him, President Obama is taking action to ensure that taxpayer money is not wasted on workplace discrimination or harassment,” said Greg Nevins of Lambda Legal. “This is a tremendous step forward because so many workers live in states without effective legal protections and the federal employment protections for LGBT workers are not explicit. “In a single, bold action, President Obama has thrown open the doors of opportunity for millions of lesbian, gay, bi and trans employees,” All Out’s Andre Banks said. “The executive orders set a powerful statement for similar policies at home and abroad. Today, the President has stood up for the powerful and proven idea that employment protections are good business and good policy – without loopholes and compromises that create opportunities to discriminate against a person because of who they are or whom they love.” HRC President Chad Griffin, whose organization is one of the few which still supports ENDA, called for Congressional action to pass the long-stalled bill. “With this action, President Obama has cemented his legacy as a transformative leader,” Griffin said. “Consistently, this administration has taken unprecedented and historic executive actions to advance LGBT equality in this country and around the world. “The focus now shifts to the House of Representatives, where the Employment NonDiscrimination Act must be brought to a vote by the House leadership.”
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We can remove HIV from individual cells, researchers say HIV can be eliminated from human cells using gene therapy, according to a new study by Temple University researchers. The study was published July 21 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Most current HIV treatments target the means by which HIV attaches itself to healthy host cells and then replicates itself. The Temple team, on the other hand, decided to try removing HIV from the infected cells. “Since HIV-1 is never cleared by the immune system, removal of the virus is required in order to cure the disease,” lead researcher Dr. Kamel Khalili explained. Khalili’s team targeted the HIV genome using a strand of what is called “guide RNA (gRNA)” plus an enzyme called a “nuclease” that can excise the HIV DNA from the host cell. After that, the cell’s gene repair machinery takes over, in effect splicing the loose ends of the genome back together, resulting in virus-free cells. Researchers based the two-part approach on a system that evolved as a bacterial defense mechanism to protect against infection, Dr. Khalili said. The therapy was successful in several cell types that can harbor HIV-1, including microglia and macrophages, as well as
PrEP
in T-lymphocytes. “T-cells and monocytic cells are the main cell types infected by HIV-1, so they are the most important targets for this technology,” Khalili noted. Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has been effective in controlling the virus in HIV-positive patients, but any interruption in treatment allows the HIV to reassert itself. Even when HIV replication is well controlled with antiretrovirals, the lingering HIV presence can have serious health consequences. “The low level replication of HIV-1 makes patients more likely to suffer from diseases usually associated with aging,” Khalili said. These include cardiomyopathy – a weakening of the heart muscle – bone disease, kidney disease, and neurocognitive disorders. “These problems are often exacerbated by the toxic drugs that must be taken to control the virus,” Dr. Khalili added. Controlled tests with the gene therapy method have proven to be successful so far, but Khalili says that his team still faces a number of significant challenges before the treatment is ready for patient trials. To be completely effective the molecular agents responsible for disabling HIV’s replication process would have to be delivered to every further complicating the therapy’s effectiveness cell in a patient’s body. Another difficulty is that outside of controlled environments. HIV-1, the strain of HIV that the treatment has “We are working on a number of strategies proved effective against, is prone to mutation, so we can take the construct into preclinical
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able and appropriate decisions on their own behalf,” Grant noted. However, adherence tailed off gradually over time, and adherence that tailed off faster was associated with becoming infected with HIV. The researchers noted a “PrEP cascade” effect – 75% of those whose risk behavior indicated a need for PrEP actually chose to start taking it, but when they returned three months later, 93% of them were still being given PrEP meds but only 70% were actually taking it in significant amounts. Adding in discontinuations for side effects or by patient choice, this meant that only 39% of study participants who were at high risk of HIV at the start of the study were taking clinically meaningful doses of PrEP three months later. If people stopped, they tended to stop early, after what the researchers called “a brief period of engagement with PrEP.” People were much less likely to discontinue
studies,” Khalili said. “We want to eradicate every single copy of HIV-1 from the patient. That will cure AIDS. I think this technology is the way we can do it.” PrEP later on in the study. Interestingly, although taking PrEP was related to sexual risk, receiving it was not, indicating that a lot of people were stockpiling the meds at home, possibly for times they did feel at risk, though a pattern of intermittent use was rarer than simply stopping it altogether. Age turned out to be the strongest determent of adherence. Participants in their 30s were twice as likely to have detectable drug levels in their blood as participants under 25, and over-40s three times as likely. Rates of adherence were not associated with recreational drug use or alcohol. One other big influence on adherence was whether people believed PrEP would work or not. News of the efficacy of PrEP was released about halfway through the follow-up period in the study, and after this there was a substantial improvement in adherence seen in the men in Peru, who also tended to be younger than men in the other groups. Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
good adherence to the medication schedule affords significant benefits. There has also been some concern that PrEP meds like Truvada might not be safe to use long term, and that access to PrEP could either cause individuals to increase risky sexual behavior or be reluctant to use it. However, the study found no evidence of so-called “risk compensation” and it also found that there was an interest and willingness to use the preventative method by those at high risk of HIV-infection. “The project provides critical insight into what happens as PrEP transitions from clinical trials to clinical practice. It is particularly compelling to see such strong interest in PrEp among young Gay and Bisexual men who are increasingly impacted by HIV,” lead researcher Robert Grant of the Gladstone Institute, University of California said. The study had a flexible design whereby men could join the study but could elect to start PrEP at any time in the first 48 weeks. They could also stop taking PrEP whenever they liked. Participants were followed for 72 weeks regardless of whether they were taking PrEP or not. All participants received sexual health counseling and participants taking PrEP received extra adherence counseling. Everyone who started PrEP had a blood sample taken to assess drug levels at some point in the first twelve weeks after starting PrEP. Participants did not know exactly which blood sample was used for drug levels. In addition, a randomly selected 27% of participants had drug levels measured at every visit, and anyone who became HIVpositive had drug levels at every visit assessed retrospectively. All participants were tested for HIV every three months
and for sexually transmitted infections including syphilis, herpes, gonorrhea, and chlamydia every six months. Sixty-two percent of participants came from Peru or Ecuador, 18% from the USA, 13% from Brazil, and smaller numbers from South Africa and Thailand. The proportion actually allocated to PrEP ranged from 67% of participants in Peru to 95% of participants in Ecuador. Their average age was 31, with 20% being under 24, and 22% over 40. Seventy individuals (4%) were Transgender women – a higher proportion than in previous PrEP studies. Forty-one people, or 2.6% of the participants became HIV-positive during the study. Thirteen of these were in the group that had elected not to take PrEP while 28 were in the majority who chose to take PrEP. However, seven of these participants had actually stopped taking PrEP more than two months before they became HIV-positive, in five cases because of side effects. This meant that HIV infection rates in people on PrEP were 36% lower than in people not on PrEP. However, people who chose not to take PrEP had, as one might expect, lower rates of HIV risk behavior at the start of the study than those who chose to take PrEP. Adherence was higher in people with higher levels of education. It was 69% higher in participants reporting receptive anal sex without a condom, 57% higher in participants reporting more than five sexual partners in the previous three months, and 40% higher in participants with a known HIVpositive partner, indicating that people were adjusting their PrEP use according to their perceived risk of acquiring HIV. “If people were at higher risk they took more PrEP and adhered to it better...it shows that people who are at risk can take reason-
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by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Truvada, the leading PrEP medication
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Anti-cancer drug may flush out HIV, study says The anti-cancer drug romidepsin may flush out hidden reservoirs of HIV so the virus can be killed by antiretrovirals, according to a new Danish study reported at this year’s International AIDS Conference. “It’s called the kick and kill approach,” said Dr. Ole Schmeltz Sogaard from Aarhus University in Denmark. Romidepsin is usually used to treat lymphoma, but Sogaard and his team tested it on six HIV-positive patients in April. The test subjects all had undetectable levels of HIV, indicating the disease had been controlled by medications. Each of the six then received a reduced dose of romidepsin once a week for three weeks. This resulted in a noticeable jump in viral levels in the blood in five of the six patients, showing that they had hidden reservoirs of the virus that were not detectable. The researchers also found the drug increased the virus production in HIV-infected cells between two and almost four times above normal. Romidepsin works by “relaxing” tight coiled up bundles of DNA. This exposes the hidden HIV genetic code and leads to the production of new viruses. “We have now shown that we can activate
a hibernating virus with romidepsin and that the activated virus moves into the bloodstream in large amounts,” Sogaard said. “The trial now moves into a new phase which combines the romidepsin with something to enhance the immune system and in our case this is an HIV vaccine.” Another recent study published in the journal Nature showed that aggressive early treatment of HIV may not be as effective as once hoped because the virus forms hidden reservoirs much earlier than previously thought, even before HIV antibodies are detectable in a patient’s blood. If romidepsin could be used to flush out those reservoirs, then antiretroviral treatments might be able to affect a practical “cure” for HIV. Sogaard cautioned that there are still challenges ahead for his research. “This is a step in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go and many obstacles to overcome before we can start talking about a cure against HIV,” he said. For example, the research team could not determine what proportion of cells hiding HIV are being activated by romidepsin, or which HIV reservoirs are being successfully targeted. HIV can hide in immune cells in the blood, but there are bigger reservoirs in the gut and central nervous systems and it is not clear whether they are activated by the blood-based chemotherapy. “We know it’s a step forwards, but we don’t
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Istodax, with romidepsin, an injection treatment for cancer
know how big; it might just be a single step or it could be a great leap forward,” Sogaard added. “As a proof of concept it does look promising,” according to Dr. Andrew Freedman of Cardiff University in Wales. “The search for a cure is very much on, it’s not going to be easy and it’s unlikely a
single drug like this would be sufficient. “There’s a lot of doubt it would be enough to deplete the reservoir completely. Most people think a single approach will not be enough; a drug like this perhaps needs to be combined with vaccines or even gene-therapy.”
Umoja Fest hepatitis screenings for World Hepatitis Day by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The Multicultural HIV/Hepatitis Action Network will provide HIV and hepatitis information and screenings at Seattle’s annual Umoja Fest on August 2. The screenings will help to mark National African-American Hepatitis C Action Day and World Hepatitis Day, and will be held from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. in Judkins Park, 1119 23rd Ave. S. Multicultural HIV/Hepatitis Action Network identifies its mission as ending the disproportionate impact of HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis within communities of color through prevention, education, and advocacy. Hepatitis is a condition involving inflam-
mation of the liver, caused by one of five unrelated viruses, usually identified by letters A through E. Hepatitis A is transmitted by ingesting infected fecal matter or by very close contact with an infected patient. There is no treatment, apart from rest, but it is effectively prevented by a vaccine and by proper food prep and sanitary practices. According to the King County Public Health Department, ten cases of hepatitis A were reported in 2012, all of which were in adults ages 18 and over. Two of these cases required hospitalization, but none died. Four cases were associated with international travel to Asia (1 case), Mexico (1 case), or Central and South America (2 cases). Three cases had no identified risk factors, two cases ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Drill team members fan out before marching in the Umoja Fest parade
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required hospitalization, and none died. In 2011, a cluster of nine hepatitis A cases occurred among methamphetamine injection drug users and their contacts in East King County, with one additional linked case in another county. Prior to the introduction of the hepatitis A vaccine in 1995, hundreds of cases occurred every year in King County, with cyclical peaks approximately every five years. Since the introduction of hepatitis A vaccine in 1995, cases have progressively declined locally and nationally. Hepatitis B is transmitted by contact with infected blood, semen, and vaginal fluids, and may also be present in saliva, tears, and urine of chronic patients. It is also preventable with a vaccine. Eleven cases of acute hepatitis B virus infection were reported to King County Public Health in 2012, all in adults, and 82% of them men. Fifty five percent of the cases were suspected to have been exposed to hepatitis B through either sexual activity or injection drug use. One third of the cases were hospitalized but none died. Six hundred and seventy three cases of chronic hepatitis B were reported in 2012. Fifty percent were in men. Thirty-four percent of the newly reported female cases were pregnant and were enrolled in King County’s Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program. The program’s goal is to prevent hepatitis B in infants born to infected women by ensuring these infants receive appropriate preventive treatment. A total of 239 infants were born to women with hepatitis B in 2012, and an additional 128 infants were born to women reported
with hepatitis B prior to 2012. Since chronic HBV infection became reportable in Washington state in December 2000, the number of reports in King County has ranged from 400 to 878 each year. Reports of acute HBV cases in King County and nationally have been declining since the 1980s when hepatitis B vaccine became widely available. Hepatitis C is transmitted by blood-toblood contact, primarily through intravenous drug use in the United States, but also from poorly sterilized medical equipment and transfusions in developing countries. In 2012, 1,317 chronic and four acute cases of hepatitis C infection were reported in King County. Acute infections typically account for less than 1% of all HCV reports each year in King County. Between six and 12 reports of acute HCV infection are received annually, compared to 1,000 to 2,000 reports of chronic HCV. Each year in Washington state some 5,000 to 6,000 cases of chronic hepatitis C are reported. Hepatitis D is a special case, because it can only reproduce in the presence of hepatitis B viruses, and it is transmitted in the same ways. This virus is rare in developed countries, and no cases have been reported in King County in recent years. Hepatitis E is also rare in developed countries, and is spread through contact with fecal matter contaminating water and food supplies. One case of hepatitis E was reported in King County in 2012, in an adult exposed in India. The individual was not hospitalized and recovered. The only other cases of hepatitis infection reported in the past ten years were a probable case in 2005 and a confirmed case in 2006, both in travelers exposed in India.
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AN OPEN LETTER TO THE LGBT COMMUNITY On Monday, June 30, Paul Kawata, executive director of the National Minority AIDS Council issued the following statement: “Today, June 30 is the annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Reception at the White House. On this occasion, 244 leaders from the HIV/ AIDS community, representing 40 states and 2 territories, have released an open let-
ter thanking those in the LGBT community who stood up and recommitted to the fight against HIV/AIDS over the last year. “The LGBT and HIV/AIDS communities have always shared a common history, with the month of June holding particular significance to both. We must remember that just as our histories are closely intertwined, so too is our future. Despite our multitude of
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policy successes, we have failed to make any real progress in the fight against HIV in our community. Gay and bisexual men are the only population experiencing rising rates of HIV infection, with young black Gay men carrying the heaviest burden of any population in the country. We cannot truly achieve victory in our struggle for equality until we have also achieved LGBT health equity, in-
cluding an end to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. “The fight against HIV started in the LGBT community. The only way we will end it is the same way, united in the struggle to protect the health and lives of LGBT individuals across the country and the globe.” The full text of the letter with signatures can be read below:
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New HIV diagnoses down for all groups except Gay and Bi men, AMA study says
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A new American Medical Association (AMA) study shows that new HIV diagnoses have dropped by one-third in the last 10 years. The exception: Gay and Bisexual men. In that key demographic, the rate of new HIV diagnoses doubled in the same period. The survey was published July 19 in the Journal of the AMA as part of the publication’s coverage of the International AIDS Conference in Melbourne, Australia.
The study is based on HIV diagnoses compiled by health departments in all 50 states, based on test results from doctors’ offices, clinics, hospitals, and laboratories. The data span a decade, making this a more comprehensive look at these trends than any previous study, said study co-author Amy Lansky of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to the data, 16 out of every 100,000 people ages 13 and older were newly diagnosed with HIV in 2011, a steady decline from 24 out of 100,000 people in 2002. Declines were seen in the rates for men,
women, whites, blacks, Hispanics, heterosexuals, injection drug users, and most age groups. The only group in which diagnoses increased was Gay and Bisexual men, the study found. The diagnosis rate is a direct measure of when people actually tested positive for the virus, not necessarily when they became infected. Diagnoses may be identifying infections that happened very recently or years before. The study found diagnosis rates dropped even as the amount of testing rose. In 2006, the CDC recommended routine HIV testing for all Americans ages 13 to 64, saying an HIV test should be as common as a cholesterol check. The percentage of adults tested for HIV
at least once increased from 37% in 2000 to 45% in 2010, according to CDC data. Lansky said that given the testing increases, the new findings may seem counterintuitive. People might assume that “if more people get tested, you’re more likely to find more people who are infected,” she said. But several factors could explain the decline. One is a statistical “ceiling effect” that occurs as HIV testing and reporting become more widespread, and the number of reported cases approaches the total number of actual cases. Another, more interesting possibility is that there actually is a decrease in new HIV infections. The CDC has been estimating about 50,000 new infections occur each year and that number has been holding steady in the past decade. That estimate is based on actual data from 25 city and state health departments, plus statistical modeling. How could the new infection rate be holding steady when the rate of new diagnoses is falling? Perhaps the infection count might be buoyed by the expanding epidemic in young Gay and Bisexual men, said Patrick Sullivan, an HIV researcher at Emory University. In that case, increasing numbers in one demographic would balance out declining numbers in other sections of people. The World Health Organization estimates 35 million people globally have the virus. In the United States, 1.1 million people are thought to be infected, though many don’t know it.
Early HIV treatment not as effective as once thought, new study says NIAID / NIH
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer HIV can form essentially invulnerable “viral reservoirs” even before it is detectable in a patient’s blood, a new study shows. If true, the findings mean that early treatment of HIV, once thought to offer hope for a cure, may not be as effective as once thought. The study, published in the journal Nature, used rhesus monkeys infected with SIV (simian immunodeficiency virus). The monkeys were then given antiretroviral drugs as early as three days or as late as two weeks after infection. Treatment was stopped after six months, but the virus re-emerged regardless of how quickly antiretroviral treatment started. From that result, researchers concluded that viral reservoirs formed incredibly early in the course of the infection. “Our data show that in this animal model, the viral reservoir was seeded substantially earlier after infection than was previously recognized,” Dan Barouch, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, said. “We found that the reservoir was established in tissues during the first few days of infection, before the virus was even detected in the blood.” The new findings would explain the case of the so-called “Mississippi Baby,” the young girl who was believed to have been cured of HIV after massive doses of
antiretrovirals were administered to her very soon after birth. She was given HIV drugs for the first 18 months of life, but then they were stopped. Initially no HIV was detected in her blood, and there was hope she had been effectively cured. However, the girl, now four years old, now tests HIV-positive after nearly two years off the drugs. “The unfortunate news of the virus rebounding in this child further emphasizes the need to understand the early
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Scanning electron micrograph of HIV particles infecting a human T cell
and refractory viral reservoir that is established very quickly following HIV infection in humans,” Barouch said. Kai Deng and Robert Siliciano, of the School of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University, in Baltimore, Maryland, said that the new study may make efforts to cure HIV more complicated, but does not necessarily rule out benefits from early treatment. “These data indicate that the viral reservoir could be seeded substantially earlier than previously assumed, a sobering
finding that poses additional hurdles to HIV eradication efforts,” they said. “Although early treatment may not prevent reservoir seeding, it has been consistently shown to reduce the size of the reservoir.” They also cautioned that there may be significant differences between experiments conducted on monkeys and the human HIV infection, but concluded that the findings “suggest new approaches in addition to early treatment will be necessary to eradicate HIV infection.”
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Rams coach: Michael Sam “absolutely not”a distraction by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor National Football League (NFL) Rams head coach Jeff Fisher, during an appearance on ESPN’s “Mike & Mike” radio show on Wednesday, stated that openly Gay new Rams draft Michael Sam was “absolutely not” a distraction for his football team. “Let’s define distraction,” Fisher added, via ESPN.com. “There were a couple extra cameras during the early OTAs, there may have been an extra camera yesterday as the rookies reported and went on the field for the first time, but no, it’s not.” Fisher’s comments were made in response to former NFL coach Tony Dungy who recently claimed that “things will happen” when explaining why he would not have drafted Sam. Dungy is the former head coach of the Indianapolis Colts and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He is currently an NBC analyst. Michael Sam was the 2013 SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year and came out as Gay in February. He was selected by the Rams at the 2014 NFL Draft. Dungy drew attention to himself and Sam as the St. Louis Rams were preparing to get training camp underway for the upcoming season with comments to The Tampa Tribune.
“I wouldn’t have taken him,’’ Dungy told Tampa Tribune reporter Ira Kaufman. “Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it.” “It’s not going to be totally smooth,” Dungy also told the Tribune. “Things will happen.” The comments by Dungy (who also advocated for teams to give Michael Vick a second chance to return to the NFL after the quarterback served time in prison for his involvement in running a dog-fighting ring) appeared in an article published by The Tampa Tribune on Sunday. His comments sparked controversy and earned him the title of the “World’s Worst Person in Sports” on Keith Olbermann’s ESPN2 program on Monday night. Earlier on Monday, Sam and the other Rams’ rookies reported to camp. “Thank God he wasn’t St. Louis Rams’ coach,” Sam responded with a laugh on Tuesday, via NFL.com. “But I have a great respect for Dungy, and everyone in America is entitled to their own opinions.” Sam reportedly then cut off a follow-up question on the controversy, attempting to downplay the situation and keep the focus on football, said NFL.com. “I don’t really care what people are coming up and talking about,” Sam said. “My job is to make this team, that’s my number one priority.”
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